The data center boom, spurred on by the rise of artificial intelligence (AI)-related services and technologies, is anticipated to significantly raise the cost of electricity for many Americans.
Global electricity consumption by data centers is expected to increase by 15 percent per year, four times the rate of consumption by all other sectors, according to an April report by the International Energy Agency, an intergovernmental organization based in Paris.
China and the United States account for roughly 80 percent of that global increase.
“AI will be the most significant driver of this increase, with electricity demand from AI-optimized data centers projected to more than quadruple by 2030,” the report states….